Ostlegionen

The Ostlegionen were conscripts or volunteers from Eastern Europe (primarily the Soviet Union) who served in Nazi Germany's Wehrmacht during World War II. The legions consisted of various groups of people, including Red Army prisoners of war, Slavs who were conscripted into the German military, or volunteers from persecuted ethnic groups such as Koreans, Chechens, and Uyghurs. The Ostlegionen rarely saw frontline service, instead being used as garrison troops or for anti-partisan operations. When the Axis Powers surrendered in May 1945, many were deported back to the USSR, where they were executed or imprisoned.